The Legal Action Center (LAC) recently released a new report titled Medicare Coverage of Substance Use Disorder Care: A Landscape Review of Benefit Coverage, Service Gaps, and a Path to Reform. The purpose of the report was to examine the substance use disorder services that may be reimbursed under Medicare, identify the gaps in coverage, and offer initial recommendations to address these services gaps through the application of the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (MHPAEA) to Medicare. The Legal Action Center concludes the report by recommending that Congress and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) cover services provided in all settings in which SUD services are appropriately and effectively delivered, covering services provided by all practitioners authorized by State law to deliver SUD care, adopting reimbursement standards based on the service delivery models, and applying MHPAEA standards to protect beneficiaries.
- Ann Tucker